A reminder: there’s an old saying about feeding the alligator hoping it will get you last. The Cancel Culture alligator is always coming for people and entities who have committed Wrongthink, and someone is always trying to feed it. It matters not if someone is an ally
Univ. of Florida ends ‘gator bait’ cheer, cites racism
The University of Florida is ending its “gator bait†cheer at football games and other sports events because of its racial connotations, the school’s president announced Thursday in a letter making several other similar changes on campus.
Florida president Kent Fuchs said in a letter to the university’s faculty, students, and staff that the cheer has a “horrific historic racist imagery†involving African American people, especially children, being used as bait for alligators.
“Accordingly, university athletics and the Gator Band will discontinue the use of the cheer,” Fuchs wrote.
The link to racism is borne out by news articles in years past. For example, in 1923, Time Magazine published a story about how “colored babies were being used for alligator bait†in Chipley, Florida.
“The infants are allowed to play in the shallow water while expert riflemen watch from concealment nearby,” the article said. “When a saurian (alligator) approaches this prey, he is shot by the riflemen.†The Chipley Chamber of Commerce responded to the Time article by calling it a “silly lie, false and absurd.â€
That seems to be the only example that the Associated Press article can find, an anecdotal one which is disputed. Anyhow, how will this work? The band won’t be allowed to play the tune which gets folks to do the gator bait cheer. What happens when the people in the stands start doing it themselves? Will security be called to remove people? Will future games be cancelled? And why is Fuchs so concerned about racism when the U of F is stocked full of leftist administrators and teachers, along with students? Students who had zero to do with this mythical “gator baiting?
Among other things, Fuchs said the university will require students, faculty, and staff to be trained on “racism, inclusion and bias†and will also bring a new focus on the African American experience in the upcoming academic year.
Why would so many Democrats need this training?
In his letter, Fuchs said the school will look into a number of other race-related topics. These include one task force to document the university’s history regarding race and ethnicity, and a second task force to examine the reasons behind honorary namings on campus.
So, expect the Cancel Culture Gator to eat more things at the U of F.
Fuchs said that he is ending the university’s practice of using prison and jail inmates as farm labor in some of its agricultural programs. He also said the university will redouble its efforts to recruit and retain African American students, faculty, and staff.
So, those inmates will lose valuable time outside earning some money. What do they do then? Seems to be giving a second punishment to inmates. And just wait till Fuchs realizes that the gator mascots only represent two genders!
I have no problem with making prisoners spend more time behind bars and not having the diversion of working outside on farms! Yeah, make prison worse.
Oh, wait, now I get it! the woke think that these guys are unjustly imprisoned, and if they ain’t working on the farms, they’ll all be freed.
I’m looking forward to watching Florida football this fall; let’s see if the students don’t come up with the gator bait cheer all on their own.
Why would so many Democrats need this training? Teach assumes that all or at least most Floridians are Democrats.
What happens when the people in the stands start doing it themselves? Will security be called to remove people? Will future games be cancelled? And why is Fuchs so concerned about racism when the U of F is stocked full of leftist administrators and teachers, along with students? Teach assumes that all or at least most U of Fla fans are students and teachers, and further assumes that all or most are leftists.
Maybe the school hopes their fans will display a measure of human decency. But it IS the south.
According to Snopes, there is NO evidence to support the use of Black babies as ‘gator bait, although the supposed practice was widely noted in jokes, song and stories. Anyway, as the one expert said, a Black child was more valuable than an alligator in the age of slavery.
Mr Dowd wrote:
The Florida-Georgia football game has long been called “the world’s largest outdoor cocktail party.” Yeah, drunk fans are really going to toe the political correctness line!
White students and black students both did the Gator bait cheer. It’s just a freaking football game!